When Will The State Hall Call?

PORTSMOUTH — Combined, the five Virginians in question have won almost 1,000 NASCAR races and finished perhaps 500 more among the top five.

Three are in the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame at Darlington, S.C. Two of those three are also in the International Motorsports Hall of Fame at Talladega, Ala.

Perhaps even more impressively, each was recently named among the 50 greatest drivers in NASCAR's first 50 years.

But of the five - Ricky Rudd and Glen Wood, and the late Ray Hendrick, Curtis Turner and Joe Weatherly - only Weatherly has been honored by the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.

Rudd, of Chesapeake, is still racing and therefore not yet eligible. He's a cinch to be recognized by the organization as an early-ballot choice once he retires. The same holds for Wood, a former driver who directs the famous Wood brothers team in Stuart.

But what about Richmond native Hendrick and Roanoke native Turner? According to VSHFM executive director Eddie Webb, there's no reason they can't be honored along with the ``blue-bloods'' who played college and professional stick and ballgames.

``In fact, Curtis Turner and Ray Hendrick have been nominated, but not selected,'' Webb said. ``That's not unusual because it generally takes about three years to get in.''

It also takes some gentle lobbying. Webb acknowledged that the 22 VSHFM officials who review nominations and vote on enshrinement know little about racing. It's up to VSHFM members - it costs $25 a year, and only members can nominate - to make a strong case for drivers.

``We need nominations from members who know the candidate's credentials,'' he said. ``There's certainly no feeling among our voters that we don't want racers. It's mostly a matter of getting all the information we can.''